What is it?

Part of Axiology =
the study of value (a/moral)

ETHICS

The study of normative value judgments

How things ought to be

Morality: “right” and “wrong”

AESTHETICS

The study of descriptive value judgments

How things are (objectively or subjectively)

“Art” and “beauty”

The study of the feelings and judgments involved in experiencing the arts or other objects deemed beautiful.

Aesthetics deals with an interesting set of objects: works of art—things that are important to almost everyone, that give us pleasure, that sometimes favor us with a glimpse of the transcendent, but that are neither useful nor essential to our existence.

Philosophy of Art

One part of aesthetics focuses on the aesthetic value and experience of the arts

Philosophy of the Aesthetic

The other part investigates aesthetic value in beautiful things outside that category

Questions in Aesthetics

What, if anything, gives an object aesthetic value?

Is there such a thing as an aesthetic experience and if so how does it differ from other kinds of experiences?

Can art be a source of truth or knowledge?

Does the perception of beauty have anything to do with moral concerns?

Can some art objects be reasonably judged to be better than others—or are there no standards at all for judging one object superior to another? That is, can anything be objectively beautiful?

Definitions of ‘Art’

Representation

To create art objects is to depict or imitate objects in the world.

Expression

Art is a way of communicating the artist’s feelings and prompting others to experience those same feelings.

Formalism

Art is define by the structure or organization of its parts, by such qualities as the unity or harmony of the whole. The content is inessential.

Undefined

Art cannot be characterized. The possibility of devising a plausible definition of art is called into question.

Aesthetic Value

Whether or not the object in question is considered ‘art’, we can also discuss whether an object has aesthetic value if it: (i) does something, or (ii) has particular formal characteristics.

Does Something

If it serves some important function—if it engenders exalted or edifying emotions, serves a moral or social purpose, conveys social truths or values, effects change in social or political systems, or rouses sensations of pleasure in the audience.

Has Particular Formal Characteristics

The candidates for these traits typically include unity, coherence, intensity, radiance, and complexity.

Judging Aesthetic Values

Just like in other areas of philosophy, the way one understands the nature of aesthetic value judgments can be different

Objectivism

Objectivists insist that works of art have objective properties by which we can judge their aesthetic goodness or badness. The properties exist in the art object.

Subjectivism

Subjectivists deny this and argue that whatever aesthetic criteria we have are purely subjective; the apparent aesthetic properties of the art object are in the eye of the beholder. The goodness or badness of a work of art depends on how the audience responds to it.

Test Your Intuitions

Art

Find an example of (1) something that is art which is in line with your definition and (2) something that is not art because it fails to fit within your definition. (3) Can you find anything that you think is art, but does not fit within your definition?

Value & Beauty

If you had to make a list, what would something need to have / be to be ‘beautiful’? Do you view your criteria as being something everyone should agree on (i.e., objective)? Or as things that can be different for different people (i.e., subjective)? Find an example of something that is: (i) beautiful because it satisfies your criteria, and (ii) not beautiful because it fails to meet your criteria. Can you find anything that you think is beautiful, but does not meet your criteria?